Venting Thread- Vent about anything.

[Crucial BBQ]

On June 9, 2016 at 11:52 PM, Danger_Zone said:

I can't stand the winter weather (and yes, I'm from Canada  ). Not so much because it's cold but, because it's incredibly dry. My skin is completely ruined as soon as it starts to get cold in the fall. I have the same problem with my knuckles too. Lotions and a humidifier help but definitely don't fix the problem. I'm also much happier during the summer. I'm thinking of eventually moving somewhere warmer. 

I moved to Minnesota from California; it totally blew my mind how dry the air could get during the winter.  So dry that it couldn't even snow.  

[dr. t]

On 6/16/2016 at 2:35 AM, MathCat said:

Stop signs are not such a "quirk" of commuting on a bicycle, though.

Oh but they are, though. You might look up the Idaho stop law. Also, drivers frequently ignore and/or roll through stop signs and no one seems to care very much.

Many rules of the road make little to no sense for cyclists, and should be ignored. Similarly, rules of the road that make no sense for drivers (e.g. speed limits) are also frequently ignored.

Edited June 20, 2016 by telkanuru

[spectastic]

seriously, in my view, when it's 100 deg F out, with high humidity, and your chin is dripping like a greenland iceberg, there's nobody in the cross traffic, and the cars around you have 20x the power to weight ratio as you (I did the math), it's asinine to expect bicycles to operate exactly like motor vehicles

 

and honestly, in situations like these, when the rules are more of a hindrance than any help, we conform anyway, because we seek social approval, not because it keeps us safe. so as with most arguments, between the thesis (cyclists should behave like motor vehicles and follow the rules) and antithesis (cyclists should just do what they feel like), my position stands somewhere in the middle, follow the rules such that you're predictable to drivers, and disregard some with careful discretion.

Edited June 20, 2016 by spectastic

[spectastic]

and boy, as a cyclist, if I had a dollar every time I've encountered an asshole driver on the road, yelling, honking, even throwing shit, I'd be set for life.

[Oshawott]

That moment when you realize that the way you constructed your study design makes data analysis needlessly difficult.

[shadowclaw]

Shit. Life happened and my advisor needs to step down as my advisor to tend to her family. The good news is that she will remain with the university and is willing to serve on my committee, and she's willing to stay on as my advisor until I can secure a new one.

I'm annoyed with myself though. I wasn't as productive or focused on my dissertation as I wanted this year because I stretched myself too thin between classes, my TA position, and a side project. If I had my proposal complete (or almost complete) and was ready to do my preliminary exams, she probably would have stayed on since I wouldn't need much feedback or assistance. Then again, this could be an opportunity to find an advisor with grant money and I could get on an RA instead of a TA. It's such a bummer, though.

[spectastic]

has anyone tried to outsource their grading of papers to overseas?

[SymmetryOfImperfection]

everything sucks.

only a single experimental variable is reproducible, all other experiments failing.

unable to identify why experiments are failing since intermediate steps seem to  be working.

slipping on cleanup.

getting yelled at by the postdoc for slipping on cleanup.

[kimmibeans]

I nearly got into a major accident today (took a turn too fast onto an exit ramp and spun out, ending up in the middle of the divider). I'm okay and somehow managed to gain enough control of the car to not hit anything while I was spinning, so the car is okay too. It was just terrifying and I'm a bit shaken up and kind of dizzy, which is odd considering this happened about 3 hours ago. On the bright side, I may have what it takes to be a professional stunt driver if this whole PhD thing doesn't work out.

[spectastic]

53 minutes ago, kimmibeans said:

I nearly got into a major accident today (took a turn too fast onto an exit ramp and spun out, ending up in the middle of the divider). I'm okay and somehow managed to gain enough control of the car to not hit anything while I was spinning, so the car is okay too. It was just terrifying and I'm a bit shaken up and kind of dizzy, which is odd considering this happened about 3 hours ago. On the bright side, I may have what it takes to be a professional stunt driver if this whole PhD thing doesn't work out.

good thing nothing got damaged. I remember when I used to work at the plant, I'd come out mentally drained, with a 30 mile commute ahead of me. Damaged my car's suspension one rainy day, to the point where insurance had to get involved. I was driving a fancy rental jetta for a while (uninsured). One day, I was driving that jetta home, 50 mph down a straightaway, saw a motorcycle pass by, and lost my attention for a split second. The next second, I'm going 50 mph into a parked car in the middle of the road, trying to make a left turn, ~100m and closing. I don't know if I just didn't see him in the distance, or if he had braked hard to make the turn, but without any time to think, I steered across the yellow line into oncoming traffic to avoid rear ending him. the rear wheel skidded a little, as I braked, and steered at the same time. For the next 40 minutes, I drove home thinking, "did that just fucking happen?" I almost ran an uninsured rental into a pickup, and on top of that, I could've collided head on with oncoming traffic.

former coworker told me he experienced similar things, and that he would take micro naps while on the highway, whatever the F that means.

[Cheshire_Cat]

Undergrads are so whiny!!  You are adults.  You are in charge of you.  And part of that is being at class when you should be, and staying the whole time.  If you can't do that, you are responsible for the consequences.  Get over it.

[kingslayer]

Haven't even started grad school yet and I'm already in panic mode. My friend didn't go to college at all, yet she's making more money than I am. She currently the top salesperson at her branch and I'm so happy for her but it also makes me super self conscious about my life and my accomplishments. She's about to move  into an actual house with her boyfriend, is happy, will probably end up as a manager and above. I'm just here broke, in massive amounts of debt, boyfriendless, and unsure about what I'm good at. I don't even know if I'll be good at my future job OR if I'll get a job when/if I graduate. Uncertainties are so scary argh

[MathCat]

9 hours ago, Sagnik_G said:

I fail to understand your point and I hope you're being sarcastic. What makes you think UGs are whiny? This is a thread for people to vent and release their stress a little, obviously people are going to be recounting their issues and problems, I fail to see why you're here if you can't stand people whining! Keeping aside the fact that you chose to come to a venting thread and accuse people for venting, do you really think that academics should be the only thing UGs have to think about? 

"Do your classes properly and don't complain about anything else" is the impression I get from your post, a little strange, no? People ere are recounting incidents in their life that has them stressed, what does that have to do with being in class?

Sorry, I don't mean to come off as rude, but I'm just a little baffled as to how you came to the conclusions you did.

I think they are ranting about TAing/teaching whiny undergrads...

[SymmetryOfImperfection]

Just now, kingslayer said:

Haven't even started grad school yet and I'm already in panic mode. My friend didn't go to college at all, yet she's making more money than I am. She currently the top salesperson at her branch and I'm so happy for her but it also makes me super self conscious about my life and my accomplishments. She's about to move  into an actual house with her boyfriend, is happy, will probably end up as a manager and above. I'm just here broke, in massive amounts of debt, boyfriendless, and unsure about what I'm good at. I don't even know if I'll be good at my future job OR if I'll get a job when/if I graduate. Uncertainties are so scary argh

Welcome to grad school and the typical graduate career path.

I have friends that also didn't go to college or majored in an easy A major, making money, getting married and all that. I'm a male though, it's a bit different, but you see high school or college friends talking about their investments, spouses, family vacations, etc, and you're here wondering, what am I doing with my life?

I kind of realized it's not worth it to go nuts over grad school. It is what it is, and it certainly is not supposed to define who you are as a person. If you let it define who you are, you won't like the results.

What helps me is doing chores and cooking. It is very easy to become a research robot and survive on cup noodles, Cheetos and Mt. Dew. Doing chores and cooking reminds me that I am a human being.

Best of luck.

[Cheshire_Cat]

13 hours ago, Sagnik_G said:

I fail to understand your point and I hope you're being sarcastic. What makes you think UGs are whiny? This is a thread for people to vent and release their stress a little, obviously people are going to be recounting their issues and problems, I fail to see why you're here if you can't stand people whining! Keeping aside the fact that you chose to come to a venting thread and accuse people for venting, do you really think that academics should be the only thing UGs have to think about? 

"Do your classes properly and don't complain about anything else" is the impression I get from your post, a little strange, no? People ere are recounting incidents in their life that has them stressed, what does that have to do with being in class?

Sorry, I don't mean to come off as rude, but I'm just a little baffled as to how you came to the conclusions you did.

I'm venting about my students. They are whiny, specifically when they think they can come to half a class and get credit for being there the entire time, in a class where each day covers a week's worth of material.  The irony of whining about whining is not lost on me though.

[Sagnik_G]

3 hours ago, Cheshire_Cat said:

I'm venting about my students. They are whiny, specifically when they think they can come to half a class and get credit for being there the entire time, in a class where each day covers a week's worth of material.  The irony of whining about whining is not lost on me though.

I apologize, I misunderstood your original post. I thought you were complaining about everybody on this thread! Sorry about that! Hopefully no hard feelings.

I'm an undergrad too, and while I'm definitely not whiny, I do understand the frustrations of people who barely attend classes. Many people like that in my class!

[Cheshire_Cat]

14 hours ago, Sagnik_G said:

I apologize, I misunderstood your original post. I thought you were complaining about everybody on this thread! Sorry about that! Hopefully no hard feelings.

I'm an undergrad too, and while I'm definitely not whiny, I do understand the frustrations of people who barely attend classes. Many people like that in my class!

That'a fine.  As a general rule I actually like my undergrad students more than I thought I would, but everyone has those days.

[ZeChocMoose]

I am trying to finish up my dissertation this upcoming academic year and I keep on getting inquiries on what are my *fun* summer vacation plans followed by when am I going to finish.  I know that they mean well - but it is seriously starting to bug me...  I also try to tell myself I will have *fun* summer vacation plans next summer when I am finished and have secured a job that gives me disposable income

[kimmibeans]

There's as bunch of drama happening on the staff Facebook for an organization I volunteer with and it's driving me nuts. Essentially there is one person playing victim about something that happened and is making a big stink. There were faults on both sides, but she is overwhelming the conversation and anybody who disagrees or points out facts is "bullying" her. Now people are taking sides without hearing the whole story and shit is hitting the fan. Part of me wants to go in and just tell her and everyone else to get over themselves, but I know it is better politically to stay neutral and ride it out since I am not involved in this at all. Therefore, I'm sitting on the sidelines with popcorn watching the world burn and waiting for the dust to settle.

[spectastic]

i got in a bike wreck this weekend, and just found out friend of mine I was going to go watch fireworks with got hit by a car on his way yesterday. fractured arm. hit and run. he probably has no insurance. GFD

[spectastic]

correction, friend was hit by a "fat dude on a beach cruiser" and broken arm was actually just a hairline fracture. 

don't know why I assumed car. carry on.

[kimmibeans]

On July 4, 2016 at 11:30 PM, kimmibeans said:

There's as bunch of drama happening on the staff Facebook for an organization I volunteer with and it's driving me nuts. Essentially there is one person playing victim about something that happened and is making a big stink. There were faults on both sides, but she is overwhelming the conversation and anybody who disagrees or points out facts is "bullying" her. Now people are taking sides without hearing the whole story and shit is hitting the fan. Part of me wants to go in and just tell her and everyone else to get over themselves, but I know it is better politically to stay neutral and ride it out since I am not involved in this at all. Therefore, I'm sitting on the sidelines with popcorn watching the world burn and waiting for the dust to settle.

Turns out staying neutral was a good call. This insanity is getting worse. Why can't we all just get along?

[educdoc]

On June 22, 2016 at 6:50 PM, shadowclaw said:

Shit. Life happened and my advisor needs to step down as my advisor to tend to her family. The good news is that she will remain with the university and is willing to serve on my committee, and she's willing to stay on as my advisor until I can secure a new one.

I'm annoyed with myself though. I wasn't as productive or focused on my dissertation as I wanted this year because I stretched myself too thin between classes, my TA position, and a side project. If I had my proposal complete (or almost complete) and was ready to do my preliminary exams, she probably would have stayed on since I wouldn't need much feedback or assistance. Then again, this could be an opportunity to find an advisor with grant money and I could get on an RA instead of a TA. It's such a bummer, though.

Where I am now, TAs are paid a bit better than GSR/RAs. About $300/ month more... Which counts when you also have a family on tow. But I'm still a GSR. Too interesting to give it up for now.

[Cheshire_Cat]

I dislike grading.  My dad used to get super grumpy when he had to grade, and I didn't understand why.  Now I do.  I'd rather everyone make 100's all the time.

[shadowclaw]

I'm doing an internship right now, and honestly it's boring and at times annoying. I'm not yet working on the project I was hired to do and I feel like by the time the project gets underway it will almost be time for school to start. However, as long as I'm getting paid, it's really not a issue. What is an issue is that we are supposed to do public presentations at the end of the season and my supervisor scheduled them during the first week of class. I brought it to his attention, and today one of our team leaders said that they will fall anytime from my school's orientation week to the second week of classes. I already told them that my last day would be right before orientation week (I have many obligations to my program and for TA stuff that week), and I'm certainly not going to have time once the term starts. For real, who tries to schedule summer internship activities after the school year begins?